ADHD Diagnosing

I 100 percent agree with PSM.  Maybe I'm cynical, but schools have a vested interest in how the testing turns out, in addition to not having skilled diagnosticians.  A pediatrician is a wonderful first-line resource on childhood illness, but he cannot possibly be an expert on everything.  Our pediatrician refuses to evaluate for ADHD because he knows he doesn't have the qualifications to diagnose a complicated neurological disorder like ADHD.  He always refers to a neuropsychologist for testing.  That's where I've always gone when my kids have had struggles in school.  They are pricey, but as PSM suggested, arrange for a payment plan.  It's well worth knowing exactly what's going on with your children so you can get them the proper interventions.

I posted a week or two ago about how to get kids tested, and the problems I have been having with my two younger children. Our school recommended getting them tested, and suggested going through a local mental health facility. They referred us to the local college, which tests people for $400 each, no insurance accepted. I called the facility back and they referred us to a private Pschiatrist who does the testing for $6-700 per person, but they accept insurance. Our insurance only covers 80%, which still leaves us paying over $100 out of pocket. After another meeting at school, the principal said that the school couldn't help us at all with our middle child (or the youngest, really, since she's not in school yet), and suggested we try to get the money any way we can and get him tested asap. The problems he's having at school involve being booted from the bus for a 2nd time, and being in constant trouble in class. His teacher is wonderful. He's in 1st grade, and this teacher is a god send. She's really trying to work with us in any way she can, and is helping him in every way she can without getting short with him, or giving up on him (as is what happened last year).

Anyway, after the meeting with the principal and bus driver, and being told the school can't help, I found a few websites that all said, "Public schools are required by Federal Law to provide free ADHD testing." I couldn't find if this was true or not, so I finally wrote to the guy at our state Capitol who oversee's special education needs in the schools. He told me they are required to test them. So, I wrote to the school superintendant as well as the principal, then we met with the principal two days later about it. From there, she said they can test him, but not for ADHD, only for Autism, or a learning disability, which they don't believe he has. Mostly, because when he's actually interested in the work, he can do it with no problem. He's learning it, he's just not applying it.

So, from there we called our family doctor and set up an appointment, and we go there a week from tomorrow.

I guess what I'm trying to find out is whether a family doctor can fully diagnos ADHD, or if we'll still be sent to a psychiatrist, who will in turn charge us? Our insurance covers any doctor's appointment aside from a $10 co-pay, which is a huge difference from $120 co-pay.

Does anyone have any experiance with this?
Also, I was told by someone that ADHD is considered an actual disability, which is recognized by the state, which will protect him from any discrimination, and provide us with extra help we wouldn't otherwise qualify for. Is that true?